Anaho Bay

The day after Mike left, we pulled up the hook and started making our way around the island. The first day we only made it about six miles to Hooumi Bay but it felt very far from the business of Taiohae Bay. We wanted to get to Anaho Bay so we only stayed the one night and didn’t even go ashore but the anchorage was calm and quiet. It deserved a longer stay.

We were up and away in good time the next day. We headed out and around the southeast tip of Nuku-Hiva and enjoyed a broad reach along the east coast of the island.

Anaho Bay did not disappoint. Steep mountains, a reef fringed sandy beach and little onshore development, made it a spectacular spot. Highlights of our time there included meeting up with Carson and Jamie from SV LeeAnn, purchasing lettuce and other vegetables from Roger which were fresh from his garden, as well as walks along the pristine beach.

Taioa Bay–Daniel’s Bay

Daniel’s Bay is named by the cruising community after the man that used to live there. Daniel died several years ago but the name has stuck.

The entrance to the bay was fun. Getting there we’d spent the afternoon beating into strong winds and waves. We were ready to get the hook down and relax. On first sight of the entrance, we weren’t sure that would happen. The bay’s entrance is open to the prevailing wind and swell. When approaching I had trouble imagining that it would be calm inside but it was. We rolled our way into the bay and once clear of the entrance, made a sharp right turn. Almost immediately things calmed down. There was still a little swell but we were safe and comfortable.

The bay was beautiful. It was surrounded by steep mountains with clear water. The small community is water access only and once we arrived, I could see why. It would be very difficult to build a road through the surrounding mountains.

Several times we had manta rays feeding around our boat.

One morning, we hiked up to the highest waterfall in the Marquesas. The trail started in the small village, wound its way through the farmed area at the edge of the community and then through the surrounding forest as we made our way up the valley to the falls. As we wound our way through the forest we had to watch our step so we didn’t slip on all the mangoes that had fallen from the trees above. There we were, an hour’s walk from the village and there were mangoes growing all around us! Once we got to the falls, we were too close to them to get a good view but the area was beautiful, lush and green. It was definitely well worth the hike even if the final view of the falls was obstructed. On our way back to the boat, we stopped at one of the houses in the village where a lady had prepared a delicious lunch of yellow fin tuna and fried breadfruit for us.

Back to Taiohae Bay

From Daniel’s Bay we returned to Taiohae Bay. We hadn’t planned to return to the bay before going to Ua-Pou and then on to the Tuamotus but waiting for a weather window to cross to the Tuamotus took longer than we’d planned. As the days slipped by, we were eating into the stores we’d laid on for the Tuamotus. Therefore, we decided to head back to Taiohae Bay to top up our provisions.

Hakahetau Bay, Ua-Pou Island

We went to Hakahetau Bay on Ua-Pou as our final stop in the Marquesas. It was another amazing anchorage. The people in the community were very friendly. Also, just up the valley we discovered our favourite waterfall in the Marquesas. The water was clear and cool–just what we needed to cool off while we waited to make our Tuamotus crossing. We ended up waiting several days more than we’d planned but more on that and the crossing in a future post.